Epilogue

Six months later

Marlie's mother and sister gave her one last hug before leaving the dressing room to join the rest of Marlie's family. Given how she'd distanced herself from them, she hadn't been certain they'd come to the wedding, but was grateful they'd made the trip.

"Thank you," Grace said as she attached the long lace veil to Marlie's updo.

"For what?" Marlie looked at herself in the full-length mirror. The silk A-line wedding dress, with its delicate embroidery and tiny crystals, sparkled whenever she moved. Tori and Gemma had worked their magic again on her makeup, and especially her hair, into which they'd tucked white baby's breath and more crystals.

"For everything." Grace adjusted the comb deeper, so the veil wouldn't fly away and take Marlie with it if a wind kicked up, as it was likely to do on the top of the Red Rocks amphitheater. "For welcoming me into your family. For helping me find an apartment nearby, and for letting me be in your wedding party. But mostly, for helping me with…you know."

"You're welcome." She met Grace's gaze in the mirror. Turning, she took the other woman's hands in hers and squeezed them. "You're my family now, too. I've loved getting to know you." Grace hadn't been kidding when she'd said she had a lot to tell them.

In the six months since they'd found her, Marlie had not only been counseling the children they'd rescued from the camp, but Grace, as well.

Turned out she'd remained at the camp until she was seventeen, when Frank Manello made it clear he wanted her for himself. That's when she started planning her escape, stealing cash, small amounts at a time, so no one would notice. On the day of her escape, she'd put those hide-and-seek skills Evan had told her about to good use. Eventually, she hitchhiked to Grand Junction, taking odd jobs and staying at shelters until she saved up enough money to rent a small room.

Then, not wanting Manello or anyone else at the camp to find her, Grace lived off the grid. Her only sources of income were always in cash—teaching piano and selling her watercolors at craft fairs. She was good at both, and eventually made enough to rent the tiny house they'd found her in.

Marlie's counseling didn't end with Grace. She was also helping Evan and his parents to understand why Grace had chosen not to return to her family, even after she'd escaped the camp.

"You look beautiful." Grace lifted the veil, releasing it and letting the air settle it around her shoulders and the back of the dress.

Behind them, a cork popped, then another.

"Thank you, but you all look beautiful."

"Champagne anyone?" Gemma held up a bottle of Dom Perignon in one hand, and a different bottle in the other. "None for you, though." She pointed to a very pregnant Tori, who sat sprawled on the dressing room's sofa, her baby-belly covered in pretty pink silk. "I got you sparkling cider."

"Yuck." Tori made a face, and with obvious reluctance, accepted the flute Gemma handed her. "I'm really learning to despise this stuff."

Tish, her maid of honor, poured more glasses of champagne, handing one to Gemma and another to Patty McGarry.

Grace looked at her mother and sighed, whispering, "Between Evan and my parents, they have so much love to give. I don't know if I'm ready for all of it, yet."

"I know it can be overwhelming at times, but it will get easier. On all of you. I promise." She hooked her hand around Grace's elbow. "C'mon. Let's get some bubbly."

Grace sighed again, but this time, the corners of her mouth lifted, something Marlie had noticed was coming more easily to her with each passing day. The reintroduction to Evan and her parents—particularly Evan's father, Sean—was slow, but they were making progress.

"Here you go." Patty handed Marlie a flute, then did the same for Grace, giving her daughter a hesitant smile.

"Your dress looks beautiful," Grace said as she looked at her mother's cream-colored silk dress, one chosen to complement the pink sheaths the rest of the bridal party wore. "Mom," she added.

Patty blinked, doing an admirable job of holding back the floodgates. Instead, she placed a hand on her daughter's cheek. "Thank you, dear."

Oh, shoot . That was the first time Grace had called her mother "Mom," and the first time she'd witnessed Grace receive one of her parent's touches without flinching. Now Marlie had to blink or risk ruining the makeup Tori and Gemma had so painstakingly applied.

After getting over the initial shock of seeing Grace for the first time in twenty-four years, the difficult part of the reunion had kicked in full force with the inevitable questions. The who, what, and where, were the easy ones to answer. It was the why Evan and his parents had difficulty accepting.

Gracie—the little girl—hadn't thought her parents loved or understood her, and that she would never be what they wanted. The camp had reinforced that belief. Years later, after she'd escaped the camp and regained at least some of who she'd been, she figured her parents' life would be better without her in it. Reaching out to her family had seemed far too daunting, although a few years ago, she'd driven to her parents' house, intending to knock on the door, but chickened out. Then, as more time passed, it was simply easier to remain hidden. And safer. But after watching the TV news footage about the camp takedown and the Wilsons' arrest, she decided to call the FBI tip line.

They all had a long road ahead of them, and Marlie would help them every step of the way.

Tish held up her glass. "I'd like to make a toast."

"Then someone better help me up." Tori set her glass on the table, then held up her hands for Gemma and Grace to haul her from the sofa. The moment she was on her feet, she placed a hand in the small of her back and groaned. "Baby Deck is already huge, just like his father."

Gemma arched a brow, and in typical Gemma fashion, said, "No need to brag."

Tori elbowed Gemma. "Get your mind out of the gutter."

"Okay, okay." Gemma held up her flute. "Tish, you were saying…"

"A toast." She waited for them to raise their glasses. "To my best friend, a woman with more courage and guts than an army battalion and more love to give than anyone I know. Your journey to get here has been a long one, but you persevered and you triumphed. I love you. We all love you and wish you happiness and joy for the rest of your life." She held her glass higher. "Which starts today."

Amid the "hear-hears" and the clinking of glasses, the tears Marlie had held back earlier began rolling down her cheeks. Today was the start of the rest of her life, one filled with a new family, friends, and the greatest loves she could possibly know. Evan and Noah.

"Oh no, girl." Gemma set her glass down and raced for the box of tissues on the table. "You do not get to cry. Not yet, or you'll ruin our hard work." She dabbed at Marlie's cheeks.

"Sorry," she said, laughing through the tears and making everyone else laugh and cry right along with her.

A knock sounded, and the door cracked open a few inches. Two faces poked through the opening: Noah's and Crystal's. Someone had tied a pink silk flower around the dog's neck.

Noah looked so handsome in the black tuxedo Evan had rented for him. Together, they'd officially adopted Noah, so he was now Noah McGarry. Together, they'd also been doing a lot of something else: getting a room, because they both wanted another child. Their child. Even Noah was excited by the idea of a baby sister or brother.

"Are you ready yet?" he asked excitedly, his green eyes glittering. "It's time!"

Marlie nodded, swallowing the lump in her throat as she looked around the room at the women who'd become her friends and extended family. She was ready, and it was time.

Time for the rest of her wonderful life to begin.

…

Late April usually brought with it gusty winds on the terrace overlooking the famed Red Rocks amphitheater, located at an altitude of nearly 6500 feet. Today, Mother Nature was on their side, although Evan didn't care if the heavens opened up. He'd stay rooted right where he was, waiting for the love of his life to walk down the aisle.

For the last twenty minutes, the sun had been playing a game of hide-and-seek with the clouds, darting behind them, then suddenly popping out. The temperature was a balmy sixty-five degrees. Terrace flags and flower boughs brought in for the wedding rustled in the light breeze.

Seats on both sides of the aisle were filled. Family, friends, and work colleagues, including field agents from multiple agencies and every boss in the Denver Special Ops Task Force were there. His father had been smiling so much since Gracie had returned to them, Evan thought the man's face would split in two. All of Marlie's family had flown in from Long Island.

Brett and Deck stood at his side, along with Blue, who sported a black bow tie to match their tuxedos.

Sammy Aikens, an ordained minister, had eagerly offered to officiate the ceremony. She elbowed him in the ribs. "You ready?"

"Yeah." But his hands were shaking.

Deck leaned over. "Nervous?"

"Nope." The shaking wasn't from nerves.

"Then what's up?" Brett looked at Evan's hands.

Evan chuckled as the small band set up in a corner of the terrace started to play Calum Scott's "You are the Reason." He knew exactly what was up. "The best thing that's ever about to happen to me."

The lead singer launched into the lyrics, and everyone stood, turning to look behind them.

The terrace doors opened. His mother came out first, walking briskly down the aisle to sit beside his father. He'd definitely expected her to be crying, but he hadn't thought he'd need a box of tissues. He swiped at his eyes. Bawling in front of over a hundred people wasn't part of this ops plan.

Crystal came next. One look at Blue, and she took off, galloping down the aisle to lick Blue's face and making everyone laugh.

Leading the bridesmaids was his sister. Their gazes locked, and in that moment, the long, painful road it had taken them to get here magically disappeared, floating away on the breeze and leaving Evan with a sense of peace he had never known.

With Marlie's help, he and his parents were learning to accept what had happened to Gracie. Their recovery wasn't over, but they were all doing their part to welcome her back into their world, including the Foundation. He'd donated his piano to the Foundation's brand-new School of Music and Art, two of his sister's favorite things. She'd started teaching there a few times a week.

Behind Gracie came Tish Torres, Tori, and Gemma. Then, escorted proudly by Noah, was Marlie.

The breeze fluttered her long veil, reminding him of angel's wings. His beautiful angel. She was his heart, his soul, and so much more. Good thing he didn't have to talk at the moment, because his throat choked up with so much love and emotion, he could barely breathe. Christ, how would he get through the vows?

His angel continued down the aisle, closer and closer to the moment he'd never expected to ever be his, one he'd been waiting for his whole life.

When Marlie finally stood before him, he looked into the loveliest blue eyes he'd ever seen and the face of the person he loved more than life itself. The sun took that moment to pop out fully, illuminating her in an ethereal light and making her look like an honest-to-goodness angel. When she mouthed the words " I love you, " his heart might as well have spilled from his chest into her hands, because that's where his heart lay. Now and forever. In her hands.

"Thanks. I've got this." He winked at Noah and took Marlie's hand in his.

"Dearly beloved," Sammy began, but Evan barely heard anything after that.

With his family and friends all around him, he looked down at the woman by his side. He was looking at his future, one without sorrow, grief, or mourning.

One filled only with love.

The love doesn't end here…